All is Well

Plan for the day: Load heifer calves onto two semis who will take them to Worland to a feedlot for the winter. They’ll be back in the spring… It sounded so simple, I wasn’t sure I would go help. The guys had gathered them yesterday and tucked them safely in the corral for the night. I was here, in my pajamas, enjoying my cup of coffee, debating if I should get dressed…

Next to my recliner is a table where Vernon’s iPad sits. It dinged a text message and I hoped he’d receive it. Once you’re away from the house and wi-fi, if you’re lucky and in select spots, you might receive a text. I figured it was something like Daniel needing something from up here or the semis would be late… and so I glanced down. Tess had texted, “The calves are out.”

Those are the four words that will get a rancher moving fast.

I shifted gears, going from a cozy, slow idle to overdrive. I gulped my coffee, threw on clothes, debated swiftly over hiking boots for traction or muck boots for speed. I went with speed. Grabbed a coat since it was 16* out, and my walking sticks, and a hat. Bravo got to go but I left Indy at home. First, she won’t jump in my car and second, two enthusiastic dogs may be one too much!

I’ve been meaning to come down to see progress on our corral expansion… this was one way to do it! Daniel had the first bunch returning to the corral. As usual, I stuck my camera away, needing more to concentrate on where I was stepping and what the calves were doing. With plenty of zipping around by Daniel and my professional “act like a closed gate” routine, they were captured.

Round two.

Vernon, Brandon, and Daniel escorted them in with barely a need for my Closed Gate Routine.

Ha!

That was fairly easy compared to some of our “Calves Are Out” tragedies. Without too much further ado, the little girls were loaded onto the trucks. All is well.

Find me here!

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